By the summer of 2018, recreational marijuana in Canada could be legal. Later this week, Parliament will take up a bill that would satisfy a popular campaign promise of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party: legalizing recreational marijuana in Canada. Medical marijuana is already legal in the country. But some government officials think the target date for legalization, July 1, is too ambitious, and implementation is more likely to begin in 2019.

Details of the bill were reported by Canadian press outlets last week. The framework will largely follow the recommendations from a government-appointed task force. According to the bill, provinces will have a great deal of power in drafting the details of the legal framework. Provinces will determine the price of marijuana and how the drug would be distributed.

Federal officials will largely be responsible for issuing licenses and setting safety standards. Ottawa has set a minimum age limit of 18, but the provinces can increase that threshold if they choose. And in regard to homegrown cannabis, residents would be allowed to cultivate up to four plants per household. Though the proposed bill grants provinces a considerable amount of power and flexibility, Canada’s fast-track to legalization worries some provincial officials.

“We do support medicinal uses of marijuana, but we also know that there’s going to be some significant issues that arise as a result of legalization from a recreational perspective … not only with respect to impaired driving but with respect to a whole host of other issues,” Saskatchewan’s justice minister Gordon Wyant recently said.

Trudeau has made it clear that until a law is passed that legalizes recreational marijuana, possessing or selling the drug remains illegal. “Until we have a framework to control and regulate marijuana, the current laws apply,” the prime minister said last month. March saw a number of raids on dispensaries in Toronto, with authorities arresting a number of marijuana business owners, including Canada’s “Prince of Pot” Marc Emery.

Some members of Trudeau’s party, despite being in favor of legalization, would like to see the target legalization date of July 1 moved back. Canada celebrates its independence on that day. “I’m probably out on a limb on this one but … I don’t believe July 1 should be an implementation date for anything; it is a day of celebration for the anniversary and founding of our country,” Bill Blair, a Liberal lawmaker, recently told the Canadian press. “I don’t think that’s an appropriate date.”

Alec Siegel

Alec Siegel is a staff writer at Law Street Media. When he’s not working at Law Street he’s either cooking a mediocre tofu dish or enjoying a run in the woods. His passions include: gooey chocolate chips, black coffee, mountains, the Animal Kingdom in general, and John Lennon. Baklava is his achilles heel. Contact Alec at ASiegel@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Another day, another Uber controversy. It seems like the popular ride-sharing app will never see the end of its legal struggles. Some of the buzz is positive–Uber recently announced that it’s expanding and beefing up safety features. However, other recent headlines about the company cannot be considered anything but incredibly negative. For example, yet another rape accusation has come to light. Overall, as Uber continues to grow, so do safety concerns, and seemingly, safety features.

Read More: Uber Will Have a Rough Ride in 2015

A Philadelphia woman has come forward with allegations that she was raped by her Uber driver on February 6, and then essentially held captive in the car while he drove around for two hours following the assault. While she evidently brought the claims to the police, Uber claims that it didn’t learn about it until much later. A rep for the company told Philadelphia Magazine, who broke the story:

Our thoughts and prayers are with our rider. Upon learning of the incident, we immediately reached out to the Philadelphia Police Department to assist in their investigation and support their efforts in any way we can. As the investigation continues, the driver’s access to the Uber platform has been suspended.

New controversies for Uber aren’t just popping up here in the states. Two Uber drivers in Ottawa, Canada, recently pleaded guilty to operating unlicensed taxis. There have also been very high profile sexual assault allegations in France and India.

It’s in response to all of these developments, as well as others like them in the past and potential for more in the future, that Uber is launching new programs and initiatives focusing on safety. The additions to Uber’s safety measures will include things like incident response teams to investigate anything that may happen over the course of an Uber ride, and further review of things like quality assurance. The company will also expand its work with law enforcement, including in India where there will be a button programmed into the Uber app allowing riders to directly call law enforcement.

While some of these features seem promising, Uber still sometimes struggles to follow through, as evidenced by the United Nations Women’s partnership debacle from a few weeks back.

Read More: Uber’s New hiring Initiative: Trying to Win Back Women

Uber and UN Women announced a plan to work together to create jobs for female drivers and released a jointly signed letter on Uber’s website. However, after some backlash and safety concerns, UN Women pulled out of the agreement. Some of that backlash included a statement from the International Transport Workers Federation, which stated:

The creation of one million precarious, informal jobs will not contribute to women’s economic empowerment and represents exactly the type of structural inequality within the labor market that the women’s movement has been fighting for decades. Uber’s practices are defined by an aggressive informalization of an industry that was already deregulated three decades ago

It’s clear that Uber wants to make changes, but it’s certainly struggled to do so in the past. Perhaps it’s a side effect of being a young company that experienced a lot of growth very quickly, or just inherent to the nature of a business as informal as ridesharing. Either way, Uber needs to reform–and let’s hope that it sticks this time.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

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